Eric Grove † (1948 - 2021)

The renowned British naval historian Eric Grove passed away on 15 April 2021. Alongside Colin Gray († 2020) and Geoffrey Till, who now works at the US Naval War College, Grove (*1948) was regarded as one of the most important British naval scientists of the 20th century. Grove's career took him from King's College London via the Royal Naval College Dartmouth to the US Naval Academy Annapolis, and later to Hull, Salford and Liverpool, among other places. His most important books are still worth reading today. "From Vanguard to Trident" (1987) tells the post-war history of the Royal Navy, "The Future of Sea Power" (1990) reflects on the diplomatic, police and military roles of naval forces in the modern environment. "Battle for the Fjords" (1991) documents the practical realisation of the American Maritime Strategy. With a new edition of Sir Julian Corbett (1988), he also turned his attention to the theory of naval power. His work has encouraged a whole generation of academics, politicians and military officers to consider naval history and naval policy in a linked and practice-orientated way. As a scholar, teacher and doctoral supervisor, he has opened up ways for young colleagues at many institutions to turn their attention to maritime security and strategy. In addition, Eric Grove established the trilateral talks between the British, Soviet/Russian and American navies. He was one of the authors of the relevant "Fundamentals of British Maritime Doctrine" (1995). With this fundamental work commissioned by the British Ministry of Defence, Grove demonstrated that practice-oriented research results can solve concrete problems of security and naval policy. In addition, Grove became an increasingly popular expert for TV documentaries on 20th century naval and military history, no doubt fuelled by his engaging personality and his almost endless wealth of anecdotes. Eric had a special gift for captivating his dialogue partners in conversations and conference presentations without ever coming across as lecturing or superficial. Without a manuscript, but with an old-fashioned bow tie, he often gave presentations at conferences at home and abroad, often standing up and ready to print. In side conversations, his anecdotal knowledge literally bubbled out of him, causing him to occasionally lose his breath with enthusiasm. You could have woken him up at 3 a.m. and he would have talked with jovial energy about the sinking of the battleship Bismarck, outlined the importance of British food policy since the turn of the previous century or criticised the development of the Royal Navy since 1990. His inimitable manner also made him the centre of every party in the social part of specialist conferences. It is documented, for example, that Eric Grove led many an international colleague in chanting "Rule Britannia" late at night - he was of course the loudest and, with the help of his corpulence, led the way with great resonance. This is not the only reason why his death is a significant loss. With him, European and indeed Atlantic naval science has lost one of its most prominent representatives.

Text & photo: Dr Sebastian Bruns